Battle of the Zhdana Mountain (1135)
| map_type = | map_relief = | latitude = | longitude = | map_size = | map_marksize = | map_caption = | map_label = | territory = | result = The defeat of the Mstislavichi | status = | combatants_header = | combatant1 = Novgorod Republic | combatant2 = Principality of Vladimir-Suzdal | combatant3 = | commander1 =Vsevolod Mstislavich Izyaslav Mstislavich Ivanko Pavlovich posadnik of Novgorod Petrila Mikulchich, tysyatsky | commander2 = Yuri Dolgoruky | commander3 = | units1 = | units2 = | units3 = | strength1 = | strength2 = | strength3 = | casualties1=extremely great | casualties2=unknown | casualties3 = | notes = | campaignbox = }} The battle of the Zhdana Mountain is a battlewhich took place on January 26, 1135 between the troops of the Republic of Novgorod led by Vsevolod and Izyaslav Mstislavich and the troops of the Prince of Vladimir-Suzdal Yuri Dolgoruky. The battle was won by Vladimir-Suzdal. Background The origins of the conflict lay in the struggle of the sons of Mstislav Vladimirovich the Great against the younger Vladimirovich after the volost after the death of his father (1132). Vsevolod Mstislavich, and then his brother Izyaslav Mstislavich were expelled from the Principality of Pereyaslavl. Subsequently Izyaslav was also expelled from Turov and fled to his brother in Novgorod. The campaign was undertaken by Vsevolod in order to enthrone Izyaslav in Rostov . The reason for the battle was the bread, which the people of Suzdal started selling from Zalesye to Novgorod at inflated prices and imposing a heavy duty on the merchandise of the Novgorod merchants. The Novgorodians raised a large army in winter, leaving Novgorod on December 31 and moving along the river ice. They advanced along the Dubna River, the Zabolotye Lake, and further along the Suloti and Kubr rivers. Доклады Переславль-Залесского научно-просветительного общества. Переславль-Залесский, 1926. Выпуск 15. С. 67. The Novgorodians intended to occupy the Zhdana Mountain and Zhdan-Gorodok in order to control the waterway along the Kubr, and then to consolidate themselves in Zalesye. From here it was possible to move further, cutting off the southern regions of North-Eastern Russia and the Moscow River basin from the old cities of Rostov and Suzdal. The battle The battle took place on January 26, 1135. The Novgorodians occupied the mountain and, when troops of Suzdal troops appeared, they had to knock out the enemies from the heights. To avoid losses,, the Suzdal troops dispatched a patrol of 500 soldiers led the Suzdal voevoda (military commander) Korob Yakun to the rear of the enemy, and set themselves up in battle formation. The Novgorodians, divided into three groups, rushed from the heights and began to attack the main army of Suzdal. At this moment, Korob attacked the Novgorodians from the rear and overran them. The Suzdalians cheered and defeated the enemy; the chief leaders: the posadnik of Novgorod Ivanko Pavlovich, and the tysyatsky (thousandman) Petrila Mikulchich as well as many warriors were killed. The rich convoy became the prey of Suzdal. Subsequent events The battle at Zhdana Mountain was useless for the Novgorodians, but it influenced the actions of Yuri Dolgoruky. The battle was one of the reasons to strengthen the western and south-western borders of the princely state. Shortly after the battle on Zhdana, Yuri Dolgoruky closes the mouth of the {{Nerl River (Volga)|Nerl River]] by building a fortress (named Konstantin) on the location of the village Skyatino (1135). He then builds a wooden fortress in the trade and craft settlement on the Moscow River (1147), puts the central fortress in Pereyaslavl-Zalessky (1152) and a small fortress in Dmitrov for reliable protection of the roads along the Dubna and Yakhroma rivers (1154). Васильев, С. Д. Памятники истории в окрестностях Переславля-Залесского / С. Д. Васильев. Ярославль, 1968. In Novgorod, after an unsuccessful campaign, Prince Vsevolod and Bishop Niphont built a stone Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God on Torg to commemorate the dead or killed during the battle on Zhdana Mountain. This church was built for nine years and was completed in 1144. Макарий, архимандрит. Археологическое описание церковных древностей в Новгороде и его окрестностях. М.: в типографии В. Готье, 1860. Часть 1. С. 364—365. Because of the flight of Vsevolod Mstislavich from the battlefield, on May 28, 1136 the Novgorod veche revoked him as ruler of Novgorod. This is considered to be the beginning of the republican period in the history of the Novgorod territory. Memory About this fight on the day of the memory of Joseph Bishop of Solunsky reminds a long-ruined Osipov monastery on the river Kubr, now the village of Osipova Desert . Труды Переславль-Залесского историко-художественного и краеведного музея. Переславль-Залесский, 1929. Т. 12. С. 78. Notes Zhdana Zhdana Zhdana Zhdana Zhdana Zhdana